U.S. politicians often take pride in their democracy and boast that they are a model of a “democratic”world. However, American democracy is increasingly losing its appeal to many Americans. A clear example of this is the fact that in recent years, the voter turnout rate in the US presidential election and mid-term elections has been relatively low.Election voting rate has not been high. Statistics show that the voting rate of the 2000 US presidential election was only 50%. In 2004, it was about 60%. In the United States, the turnout rate for mid-term elections is generally only about 40%. In order to increase the enthusiasm of American voters, the US election agencies have taken a lot of measures in recent years, simplifying the voting process to facilitate voter participation, but at present it seems to have had little success. The US election agencies have been constantly streamlining these procedures, but the voter participation rate is still declining. The population of the United States has increased to 300 million, education has greatly improved, the average age of the population has increased, and the mobility of the United States population has also decreased. All these should help increase the voter turnout rate, but the fact is exactly the opposite.
In election debate, the Republican Party and the Democratic Party accused each other. This left the voters the impression that “the election is a to choose the slightly better one from the two very poor political parties.” The most important point is that American voters have doubts about the credibility of American politicians. Many people naturally lose interest in electing such community-based activities. Recent surveys by the US media show that 45% of the U.S. population will not participate in the voting. They are not only insulated from political life but also indifferent to the communities in which they live. Those people who are called “non-voters” are less likely to trust other people than voters, have less concern for friends and family members, and are not familiar with their neighbors.There is also a large number of people in the United States who are unwilling to participate in voter registration. Apart from a small part of them who gave up voting because of the complexity of the electoral process, the overwhelming majority of people abandoned the voting because “there is no time, they are not used to voting, they have no confidence in politicians, or they do not care about election results.”
In the previous presidential election vote, whites were still the main group of voters, accounting for 37%, African Americans 31%, and Hispanics 24%. At the same time, among the “regulars” who voted, there are more older people than the young people. About 40% of the people aged 50 years and above are regulars in the voting. Only 22% of the 18-29 year olds are regular voters. Among the 30-49 year olds, More than 35% of people are regular voters.In addition, in terms of the level of education received, 46% of regular voters are college graduates, and 28% are high school graduates. In respect of religious aspect, about 39% of those who regularly attend church services are frequent visitors. 31% of those who do not participate in church activities are regular voters.In terms of gender, 36% of males voted regular customers, and 34% of female voters voted regularly.
In“Debating the Issues: Voter ID laws”, the three articles gives reasons support or against the voter ID law. In the article of “Voter Fraud: We’ve Got Proof it is Easy” by John Fund, the author illustrates how easy to commit election fraud with fake ID. The Department of Investigation undercover agents showed up at 63 polling places and pretend to be voters who should not to be voter are allowed to vote in the election. And in the states that does not require ID, it is very easy to manipulate the record. The author argued that ballot security measures should be required.
In the article of “ Should the Poor be allowed to vote”, the author points out that some Americans are being excluded from the election system because of their poor economical statues. Investigations shows that texans who earned less than 20,000 are more likely to lack the identification needed to vote then those who earned more than 150,000. According to data released by the National Conference of State Legislators, in the 2012 elections, families with incomes under 20,000 U.S. dollars participated in the presidential election are only about 47% of those voted, while the family with incomes above 75,000 U.S. dollars accounts for more than 77%. Since 2008, more than 17 states have passed the “Voted Voter Identity Card” system to avoid cheating in voting. However, according to the Government Accountability Office report, it usually takes between 5 and 58 US dollars to run such an identity card, and this fee is usually burdensome for the poor, old, young and ethnic minority groups.In addition, because the poor are highly mobile, voting at local polling stations also requires additional steps to register.
In “ The Myth of Voter Fraud”, Lorraine argues that since states requiring ID check presents no problem that voters corrupt the election, there is no rational basis for the policy intervention.
I think the argument of Lorraine and Peter is more convincing. The voter ID law actually is a way of selecting the voters. Through the establishment of a strict voter identity law, the United States can change voters and bring voting results favoring conservative party. The voter ID law is essentially benefits white people but seriously affects the rights of other skin colors. Therefore, such laws carry illegal ethnic discrimination. The influence on minority voters is completely unfair.
